consumerism: a diary entry

I watched a kid beg his father to buy him a toy car at my local gift store today. Both him and his dad probably knew he’d get bored of it in a few days. His dad bought it anyway.

I wonder if the little boy wanted the car because he’d never had one, or his latest broke down, or he wanted to add it to his collection, or if he just wanted to tell his friends about it. I wonder at what age consumerism becomes performative.

When does one realize that possession of certain things/ objects affects how others think of them? How do the said “others” learn that this possession should affect how they think of the person? 

Did the little boy want to show off his new car to his friends to feel superior to them? Or to impress them so that they would like him more? Or did he want to simply share the joy of a little toy with his mates? Anyway, I paid the shopkeeper with my iPhone for the chart paper I bought and slid it into my Coach tote, walked out into the rain, wetting my Nike shoes, wondering if my own consumerism is performative. The little boy skipped and danced in the rain, overjoyed with his new toy car.